PRINT ADS

Local law enforcement will focus on cracking down on drunken driving during the “Over the Limit, Under Arrest” campaign today through Sept. 1.

La Crosse police and La Crosse County Sheriff’s deputies will patrol in greater numbers and for longer hours to arrest drunken drivers.

“When we stop a drunken driver, we don’t give warnings or accept excuses,” said sheriff’s Capt. Mike Horstman. “If you’re over the limit, you’ll be arrested.”

Impaired drivers will forfeit their driver’s license and must pay fines, court costs, increased insurance premiums and other expenses. Drivers who refuse a breath or blood-alcohol test can lose their license immediately and have their vehicle impounded.

Repeat offenders face jail time, and drivers who injure or kill someone in a crash can face serious criminal charges.

Alcohol-related crashes in Wisconsin killed 337 people and injured 5,552 in 2007, police said. A person is killed or injured in an alcohol-related crash in Wisconsin about every 90 minutes, according to the State Patrol Bureau of Transportation Safety.

Wisconsin has the nation’s highest drunken driving rate, with more than 42,000 convictions in 2007, police said.Law enforcement offered the following suggestions to avoid drunken driving:

Choose a sober designated driver before drinking.

If you’re feeling a “buzz,” you’re probably over the 0.08 percent blood-alcohol concentration limit and should not drive.

Take a bus, cab or call a sober friend.

The Safe Ride program, sponsored by the La Crosse County Tavern League, provides patrons a cab ride home and back to their vehicle at no cost. The tavern league reimbursed cab companies $34,500 in 2007, said Mike Brown, local president of the program.

.